In our little western world here in the corner of Utah, art is abundant. But that art is pretty limited to desert landscapes and Mormon culture.

As a total pop art geek, this puts me in a serious state of Eeyore. That’s why I like to take an extra minute or two to appreciate the brush strokes on an original oil of something other than a red rock, and see the care that’s gone into a detailed sketch of some noir setting. It helps me remember that, just because we live in Southern Utah, doesn’t mean we can’t have variety.

As an artist, my favorite subject to paint and draw is the human form. This stemmed from my desire to be a comic book artist when I was but a young little bloviater, to be sure. I still have aspirations to draw superheroes, but the technology used to create a comic book is leaps and bounds ahead of my meager understanding.

I still use the same medium most landscape and portrait artists use. But I’ve never painted a desert landscape, and I don’t think I’ll ever paint a portrait of Jesus, either. The two are so abundant in our area it seems silly to add to the pool.

I’m just a little saddened by the monotony of it all.

Now, that’s not saying the artists in our area aren’t ridiculously talented. I’m in awe of the techniques used to capture our beautiful desert skies just hours before a storm. I’m enthralled at the details cast in bronze of our city’s founding fathers. I’m fascinated with the seemingly endless ways to depict Kokopelli playing myriad instruments. And I could only hope to portray images of religious figures and temples the way some of our local artists do.

But where is the pop art? Surely our entire community isn’t only in love with desert, Native American and LDS art just because we all happen to live in the Utah desert.

Do any of you find comfort in a good piece of pop art? Do you find value in something modern or edgy? Do you create artwork outside our geographical norm, and you feel the same way I do?

Every once in a while, I’ll see something awesome on the walls of one of our locally-owned cafes. But other than that, I have a difficult time finding really cool, really edgy pop art. Why, even our renowned St. George Art Festival is kind of a one-trick southwest Mormon culture pony.

So I’m on a mission to add something different to the mix.

I’m currently working on a collection of portraits that will be displayed at the Roene B. DiFiore Center for Arts and Education, 307 N. Main St., St. George, in February 2015. These portraits aren’t regular. They’re not religious. They’re not cowboys or Native Americans. They’re not founding fathers. So, we’ll see if they play. If not, then I guess I am indeed in the artistic minority.

If you’re a pop artist, or you appreciate pop artwork, feel free to hit me up. It’s always great to meet like-minded folks.

Do you have a suggestion for Matthew to geek out on? Contact him at mjacobson@thespectrum.com, and follow him on Twitter, @SpectrumMatthew and Facebook.com/MatthewJacobsonGeek.